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Phthalates in many plastic items are a cause of premature birth.
Health – Plastic is definitely everywhere. Its microscopic form floods our body and environment, and thus disrupts births. This is according to a new American study published in the journal February 7 The Lancet. It shows that one in ten pregnant women’s daily exposure to chemicals in plastics is associated with premature birth.
Called phthalates, these compounds are used to soften plastics and can be found in thousands of consumer products, including plastic containers and packaging, beauty products and toys. It is also because of the phthalates that it is not recommended to heat it in the microwave in a plastic container.
Endocrine and metabolic disruptors
is the result that they can “prevent labor and premature births”, the study’s lead author, Leonardo Trasande of New York University, told AFP. To reach this conclusion, researchers analyzed the levels of phthalates in the urine of more than 5,000 pregnant women in the United States in 2018. Results: The 10% of women with the highest levels of phthalates had a 50% increased risk of preterm birth.
Extrapolating across the United States for the year 2018, they estimate that 56,600 premature births may be linked to exposure to phthalates, or about 10% of these. The problem is, prematurity can cause health problems. The researchers thus assessed the medical and social costs of premature birth associated with phthalates. According to them, we arrive at a (very wide) range that varies from 1.6 to 8.1 billion dollars.
Although it was conducted in the United States, the ubiquity of phthalates allows scientists to confirm that 5 to 10% of premature births in the world (and therefore in France) may be linked to these chemicals.
How to avoid phthalates
According to this new study, more than three-quarters of phthalate exposure comes from plastics. Even so, “Plastic manufacturers don’t pay for health effects, they don’t care about these premature babies”Underlines the researcher.
Among the few steps taken is the replacement of DEPH, a phthalate known to be dangerous by many manufacturers. The problem, this new study explains “Alternative phthalates linked to even more effects than DEHP”Leonardo Trasande explains.
Stephanie Eck, a reproductive health researcher at the University of California, San Francisco, said research has not conclusively proven that premature births are directly caused by phthalates. However, there is now “An overwhelming number of observational studies support this hypothesis”.she told AFP.
To limit the risk of exposure, it is advised to eat less food packaged in plastic and avoid beauty products containing phthalates. The researchers also recommend avoiding plastic containers, which, once placed in the microwave or dishwasher, release phthalates that can then be absorbed by food.
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